Peter Burns writes:
“Being a Film Producer means being a person whose primary skill is to enable other people. A good Film Producer makes another person feel as if they can do anything; He or she makes people feel that they can accomplish something they have never done before.”
- Anthony Minghella
(Director/Screenwriter: “The English Patient”)
Regarding Saul Zaentz

I try to be as organic as possible. Always adjusting my skills to the situation at hand, scaling to the project. I only play “by the book” when the situation calls for it. I believe that every project has it’s own life and it is my job to help it become what it is in the most loving and nurturing way possible. It’s like raising a dragon (YVOD knows this). Such a thing takes time, energy, knowledge and utmost care.

I try to know when a project is shifting or growing. I know that my projects are always being observed and that they are always open to criticism. I enjoy the journey and being watched is part of that journey, so I enjoy that too.

I like to say that when producing a show, “I am putting on a show for the showmakers.” The showmakers are everyone at every level that contributes to the filmmaking and sales process. I try to be aware of what who should know or feel and at which times. Patrick Kriwanek says that making a movie is like a military operation. This is true - and timing and tactics are essential to such an operation. Even though I am in film school, I try to behave in the same way I will in the industry. I want to be a player, so I train to play (well). Saul Zaentz told me once that, “You have to be tough but you can do it nice.” An advertising production manager once taught me, “to be generous with people, but stingy with time.” David Bergad followed that up by saying that producing is about making business decisions.

If, as a Producer, I want the world to see the films that I’ve so lovingly nurtured and passionately fought for to come to life, I have to make business decisions that sometimes adversely affect others. These business decisions protect my filmmaking family - the cast, the crew, the investors, the writers, the musicians. This is important because each of these people has contributed time, energy and expertise to my project. If I select them into my filmmaking family and give them an assignment, I am obligated to support them and their efforts even long after their job is done. Making a movie is essentially starting a business. I visualize, plan, research, hire, fire, create, produce, compete, innovate, etc. I have to live with the end result forever. A decent film has a reputation - and so does a bad one. That’s why refined people are more selective as time goes on. It comes down to time and energy. We only have so much of these resources. So, the better I become, the more selective and careful I should be as well - and I’ll have better, more enjoyable families who contribute to better films.